During football season, we interview a different broadcaster each week. The aim is to give readers an insight into how broadcasters approach their work and ask some questions about the game or task they are tasked with that week. Our 14th Q&A subject is NBC college football and NFL analyst Todd Blackledge, who will be watching the Cincinnati Bengals-Pittsburgh Steelers game live on NBC and Peacock with Noah Eagle and Kathryn Tappen on Saturday.
Recent weeks have featured Fox's Greg Olsen, Pam Oliver and Jay Glazer; Al Michaels of Amazon; Kevin Harlan of CBS and Westwood One Audio; Gene Steratore of CBS; Dan Orlovsky of ESPN; NBC's Melissa Stark; NFL Network's Rich Eisen; Joe Buck of ESPN/ABC, Charles Davis and Amy Trask of CBS and Laura Rutledge of ESPN.
Why was moving from ESPN to NBC the right move for you after nearly two decades?
I felt very comfortable there and was sure that my work was well respected and well received. I wasn't planning on going anywhere. I was there for 17 years. I had different play-by-play guys, but I had the same director, Scott Johnson, for all 17 years. Our team consisted of half a dozen cameramen the entire time. So it was a very family oriented atmosphere and I loved it. I would compare our games and our work to anyone who plays football, regardless of level.
I went to a (college) playoff game every year and was happy with it. I realized that I had reached a limit at ESPN and that nothing was going to change. When I first came from CBS (to ESPN), it took a while, but I came to terms with it. When NBC started talking to me about what their (Big Ten) project would be and how they would try to present it, I was very curious. Again, I had no plans to go anywhere. But as this thing developed, the NBC offering got better and they made me feel very important and wanted. You want to find a place that's a good fit for you, you want to feel wanted, and you want to feel like you matter to them. NBC gave me that feeling.
Your broadcast group will broadcast the Bengals-Steelers game. The last time you called an NFL game was the first two weeks of the 2000 NFL season, when you filled in for a few other CBS Sports analysts who were having health issues. A gap of 23 years for any job can be surreal. Are you nervous? Upset? A combination of everything?
First of all, I'm excited about the opportunity. I'm very grateful that NBC was confident in putting Noah, Kathryn and (me) in this position. I wouldn't say I'm nervous because I've always been a fan of the game. My dad was a coach in the NFL for 16 years. I played and I know it's been a long time but I'm still a fan.
On the weekend of the college football conference championships—this is the first year in many years that I haven't played in a college football championship game—Noah and I drove to Stamford, Connecticut, and we did a practice game at a studio. It was the Packers-Chiefs game on Sunday night. We had our producer in our ear and did the whole game. Then I flew to Dallas for the Cowboys-Eagles game because I wanted to see how Mike (Tirico) and Cris (Collinsworth) were preparing. I attended Cowboys practice and sat in on meetings with (Cowboys coach) Mike McCarthy and (quarterback) Dak Prescott. I wanted to see how Cris and Mike plan their week and how different it is than what I'm used to. I then stayed for the game and sat in the Sunday Night Football booth and listened to the broadcast.
These two weekends were very helpful for me and gave me confidence for this week. At the end of the day, it's still football. In that 23-year hiatus, the college game has become more of a professional game in terms of the rules and some of the things that happen. It's not as drastic a difference as it was many years ago.
Your broadcast group will also be calling an NFL playoff game. Was this something you expected when you came to NBC, or is this a great coincidence?
I was not expecting that. It wasn't part of my deal to come over. But I am honored and excited for the opportunity. To me, that means they enjoyed the work that Noah, Kathryn, I and our entire production team did in our first year together in the Big Ten and are confident in giving us this role. I'm very happy with it, but I didn't expect this.
How would you rate your first year in the college football locker room for NBC?
I thought it went very well. I was pleasantly surprised at how much chemistry Noah and I had. I felt like it got better as the year went on and Kathryn Tappen was great to work with. Aside from the fact that we had a few games that weren't great games, I thought the broadcast went very well and got better as the year went on.
You had never worked with Noah before. He is someone your child's age. How did you try to fake the chemistry?
I knew they were working to finalize his contract and that there was some waiting time. When it was official, we spoke on the phone and then met in New York. The Clippers (of the NBA) actually had a weekend where they played the Knicks one night and then the Nets (for whom Eagle handles play-by-play duties). So I flew to New York and our producer Matt Marvin, our director Charlie Dammeyer, Noah and I met for lunch. That was the first time I was with him in person. We then corresponded back and forth and attended the Big Ten Media Days together in Indianapolis.
I worked with great play-by-play guys — Mike Tirico, Verne Lundquist, Mike Patrick, Brad Nessler, Joe Tessitore, Sean McDonough — and I never did a practice game with any of those guys. The first time we came to a game, we did it and kind of got to know each other's rhythm and style and it went from there. Noah is a professional. He is mature beyond his years.
Noah Eagle (left) and Todd Blackledge teamed up on NBC's college football coverage. They also face the Bengals-Steelers on Saturday and have an NFL playoff game next month. (Courtesy of NBC Sports)
Which current college football coach would be a good broadcaster if he decided to leave coaching?
I think (TCU's) Sonny Dykes would be good. He has a good ol' Texas guy about him and has been involved in football, high school and college his entire life. He has a good personality. I think (Clemson's) Dabo Swinney would be good. It would be fun to listen to him. He is an energetic guy with a lot of personality. He would bring that energy to the stand, which is important.
How close were you to swearing in the air?
I came close a few times. I'll tell you a funny story. This happened early in my career. In my very first job as an analyst, I was hired by the Big East Television Network. They had just launched their own TV package. It was hard for me to get the job because I was a Penn State guy and Penn State had kind of said goodbye to its eastern neighbors and gone to the Big Ten. Some schools in the Big East weren't happy with my hire.
One of them was Pittsburgh because that was our arch rival. One of my very first games was at the old Pitt Stadium. They had a blue wooden box for the broadcast booth. It was separate from the press box. It was a lunchtime game and it was hot in September. Someone spilled a Coke on the floor of the cabin and all the while bees were flying in and out of the cabin. At one point we took a commercial break off camera. I'm smacking the bees down and saying this place really sucks. Well, some bar owner in Pittsburgh got fed up and caught me talking. Both the Big East Network and I had some heartache. The next week I had to apologize and explain. I learned to never assume that your microphone isn't on. Always assume it is turned on.
What sporting event outside of college football have you never attended but would like to attend, regardless of who has the contract?
I love the Final Four. I was there. I've seen it. As a child, basketball was my favorite sport and for a long time I dreamed of going to the University of Kentucky and playing basketball there. When I was in middle school, my dad was an assistant soccer coach at UK. I fell in love with Kentucky basketball, but I just wasn't tall or talented enough to make that dream a reality. So the Final Four would probably be the event.
Who is a current broadcaster working in another sport that you really admire and why?
The first would be (ESPN NBA analyst) Hubie Brown, just because of his longevity. I just think he's great. When I listen to an analyst, I want someone to teach me something or give me insight that I couldn't see myself, and Hubie always does that. The other guy for the same reason is (Fox MLB analyst) John Smoltz. I love listening to him at a game because he takes you into the mind of the pitcher or the batter and just gives you information that you wouldn't know on your own.
Hopefully I'll name a game that. The first game I ever did live, a producer took me aside after our production meeting and said, “Look at the guy next to you, his job is to tell people what happened, who got the ball whoever made the tackle.” Don’t repeat what he says. Your job is to answer the question “why.” Why did this piece work? Why didn't it work? Why does the game work like this?” That’s why I always tried to answer the question “why”.
GO DEEPER
Al Michaels was left out of the NBC playoff broadcasts
Previous questions and answers
• Greg Olsen: On Tom Brady and his future at Fox, Jordan Love, Justin Fields and more
• Al Michaels: On criticism, dinner with John Madden, working with Kyle Shanahan
• Kevin Harlan: About his Super Bowl series, his ties to the Buck family and the fast Dolphins
• Pam Oliver: On conveying longevity, her job, the joy of Eagles fans and more
• Gene Steratore: How an NFL rules analyst works, how to stay up to date on the rules and more
• Dan Orlovsky: On ESPN, every NFL game and the viral video that started it all
• Melissa Stark: On the art of asking questions on the field, Eagles fans and Taylor Swift
• Rich Eisen: On Chiefs-Dolphins, play-by-play and an alternate reality at Turner
• Jay Glazer: About his 3,912 phone contacts, how he does his job, and how he deals with anxiety
• Joe Buck: With the Eagles Chiefs, 22 years with Troy Aikman and covering Taylor Swift
• Charles Davis: On Steelers-Bengals, calling NFL games without playing in the NFL and more
• Amy Trask: On her transition to television, how she watches the NFL and a story from John Madden
GO DEEPER
Why do NFL ratings buck TV viewership trends? Here's an expert's opinion
(Top photo of Todd Blackledge at Big Ten Media Days in July: Michael Hickey / Getty Images)